Friend Friday is Upon us once more and this week Katy wrote:
Finding the balance I think this is one of the hardest
things for us as bloggers to deal with. How do you do it all and still
live, work and play as you should?
1. When it comes to prioritizing your life, in what place does blogging fall?
I’m going to say its pretty high up there. I treat the blog as a job. I put myself under pressure to get things done and it does take a pretty high priority, but its important to me. I want it to do well and I am putting a lot of thought and energy and time into it. To clarify I treat the blog as a job, but, it’s a job that I enjoy. I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t enjoy it and I am lucky in that I can work on it during the day when I am in the shop. That said, it can pretty hard to stay focused and when your sitting in the same spot for 8 hours, you do lose a bit of motivation.
2. We all wish we had more free time to dedicate to blogging and all it entails. What are your tricks for taking advantage of the time you do have to be as productive as possible?
I am relatively new to blogging and I am still working out the easiest way to get things done. So far, I have found it beneficial to have set posts. I have 3 set posts I do every week, A history, A vintage look, and now the FBFF. The other 2 days are wild cards that I switch around, celeb style, photos I took, guest posts,and other random thoughts, something that inspires me, magazines, movies, even just chatting with friends can get your thought process going. Keep a notepad around you or make a note of things that occur to you on your phone if you can. Its amazing how quickly you can forget an idea when its not written down somewhere.
3. Have you discovered any short-cuts that makes blogging easier or more time efficient?
Short cuts? I dont think there are any.. .are there? I will say, if you are on a roll and feel like you have it in you to whip up a few posts in a row, go for it. There is nothing more satisfying then having a few drafts done and saved before the week is up. You can then post them at leisure, and for me (because I also work nights) its great to get back that little bit of time to work on new ideas and even just sit back and relax for an evening.
4. Do you have an editorial calendar or something similar that helps you plan ahead?
I would like to have one, but, like I said, I am still sort of dancing around with different ideas on how to best be organized with in my blog. I am getting there, I have my set posts, I dont have set days, because it really depends on how many nights I was working during the week (too tired, means serious lack of motivation) and for the vintage look, we need decent weather! (which can be a tough one in the west of Ireland) I have heard talk of a few decent plug in editorial calenders for word press that Im seriously considering using, I just need to look into it first!
5. If time wasn’t an issue what you would be doing on your blog/for your blog that you aren’t doing now?
I would love to have more time during the day to grab my camera and take local snaps, to give people more of a feel for Galway, I think it has some pretty post worthy places! I would also love to travel more, see other vintage stores in different cities, not necessarily in Ireland, but then thats also a money issue as opposed to time issue. Either way Im pretty happy with the way things are at the moment and I look forward to what’s coming next!
